NLHS explores idea of weapon detection systems in health-care facilities

Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services says it's exploring the idea of implementing weapon detection systems at health-care facilities across the province, in an effort to shore up safety for patients and staff. 

"Our hospitals are a microcosm of what's happening in the community. So as we see things change in our community when it comes to security and safety, we're going to see some of that possibly spill into our sites," said Allison Collins, the health authority's provincial security operations manager.

"We're always going to take proactive measures in ensuring that our facilities are safe."

Collins says the systems can take different approaches, the most common is akin to a metal detector.

Hospitals in other provinces have adopted artificial intelligence to screen and distinguish weapons from other items like house keys.

Collins said NLHS is exploring what method could work best in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Currently, NLHS doesn't search for weapons.

Collins said an effort has been made to expand security measures since the health authority merged into one from four regional health authorities in 2023, but a timeline isn't in place right now for any new system. 

Next steps, she said, involve deciding which sites would see the practice implemented should it move forward.

Violence in health care

Yvette Coffey, president of the Registered Nurses' Union of Newfoundland and Labrador, said the impact of violent incidents in the health-care system continues to be felt, and detecting weapons is just one part of making buildings safer, but not the only solution.

"On a daily basis, when people are reporting for work, in the back of their minds they're thinking 'What do I have to face today? What's coming through the door?'" Coffey said Monday.

"I can't walk into the Confederation Building here in Newfoundland and Labrador without going through a metal detector. But yet, at the same time with rising incidents of violence in the health-care system workplaces, we have nothing. The doors are unlocked."

Coffey said much of the violence health-care staff face is verbal or emotional abuse, but that can also turn physical.

While it may not always include outside weapons, Coffey said tools inside care centres also become a threat.

"It could be an IV pole from the hospital. It could be a chair. That we've seen in several incidents. Recently, we had one incident where, you know, there was printers," she said. "The staff didn't get physically hurt, but the physical trauma that goes along with an attack like that is very everlasting."

Coffey said there are other steps that need to be taken to help limit violence in health care, like proper training for security guards, de-escalation training for all front-line staff and charging those who engage in violence under the Criminal Code of Canada.

"If you assault someone in a grocery store, it is the same as if you assault someone in a health-care setting," she said. "Once we start charging people ... I think there will be a different tune."

Coffey said the health authority needs to continue to find ways to make wait times shorter, and that frustration can often amount to a patient lashing out physically or emotionally.

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